On the second anniversary of the disappearance of the three Skelton boys, about 200 people from near and far gathered Sunday to remember them and maintain awareness that the search for them continues.

A plaque showing images of the boys that was unveiled a year ago was dedicated at Wakefield Park, just down Main Street from the fire station that was the hub of the massive searches in the week after the boys were first reported missing.

Tanner, Alexander and Andrew were last seen Nov. 25, 2010, with their father, John Skelton, at his house in Morenci. When Skelton did not return them to their mother, Tanya Zuvers of Morenci, on the day after Thanksgiving, she called the police.

That started a week of extensive searches for Tanner, Alexander and Andrew — who were 5, 7 and 9, respectively, at the time — in the areas along the Ohio-Michigan state line, fanning out dozens of miles from Morenci to search roadsides, woods, fields and lakes. Hundreds of interested people joined police and firefighters in conducting the searches in the case that made national news.

Skelton and Zuvers were divorced in 2011, and he pleaded guilty to three counts of unlawful imprisonment. He is serving 10 to 15 years in prison and is incarcerated at the Alger Correctional Facility in Munising in the Upper Peninsula.

Skelton said in one of the divorce hearings that he gave the boys to an "organization," but Morenci Police Chief Larry Weeks has said his story is not credible. Weeks is treating the case as a homicide.

Weeks said last week that more than 1,300 tips have been received. A reward of up to $60,000 for information leading to the location of the boys remains available.

Zuvers and others at the ceremony said they believe the boys are alive.

"Until I have 100 percent proof that they're not alive on this Earth, there will always be hope," Zuvers said while be interviewed Sunday by television reporters.

The plaque is mounted on a large rock next to three brandywine maple trees that were planted on the west side of the tennis courts in honor of the boys.

After the dedication ceremony, Zuvers said she and her adult daughters, Brittany Crowell and Courtney Derby, picked that variety of maple because in the fall the trees' leaves will turn a deep maroon, which is one of Morenci High School's colors.

"We love fall, and a dark color like that — I love trees with dark, dark, dark leaves," Zuvers said.

During the ceremony, relatives told stories about the boys, such as waterfights with their sisters or spending time with their grandparents, Don and Bev Zuvers, after school and sledding during the winter.

"I'm thankful for the community we live in and the surrounding areas," Tanya Zuvers said during the ceremony. "We're thankful for the support — God bless you."

Page 2 of 2 - That support extends well beyond Morenci. At the dedication, Karen Mekus of Defiance, Ohio, said her grandson Mason is about the same age as Tanner Skelton, and looks like him, too.

"Know that you're loved many miles away," Mekus said.

Mekus, who attended the ceremony with her husband, Dave, said later that she had cut out pictures of the boys from a newspaper, but then she and her husband saw one of the magnetic posters on a truck while they were camping the following year.

Some who helped in the searches came to the ceremony. Clayton Fire Department Assistant Chief Joe Garrow and firefighter Mike Cook attended.

"It's a good thing, the awareness needs to continue," Garrow said. "Somewhere, somehow a connection can be made."

Two members of the Shiawassee County Search and Rescue Team were also there Sunday.

"We'll find them someday," said Debbi, who said the team members only give out first names. "There is too much leading to the good than the bad. We're looking for three live boys, not three dead boys."

After the ceremony at the park, the crowd moved to the fire station where tables were set up in the fire engine bays for a bake sale, a display showing age-progression photos of the boys made by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, a banner on which people could write their well-wishes to the boys and their families or any Morenci-area families that have suffered tragedies, and for people to decorate paper ornaments to be hung on the boys' trees in the park. Updated posters, fliers and magnetic signs were also available.

Later, Chinese lanterns were to be released in Bean Creek at Wakefield Park.

Zuvers said the proceeds from the bake sales and donations are used to print more posters and fliers.